Cruising in Australia

Introduction The rate at which cruising is growing in Australia is marvellous. In the recent years more Australians are venturing into seas for adventure especially during holidays. The growth rate can be associated with the unique in which people can use destination sampling to tour several tourist attraction sites within a very short time.Advertising We will write a custom report sample on Cruising in Australia specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The systems of payment are all inclusive. Payments modes have been made a one stop shop. This covers travel tickets, entertainment, meals, and accommodation. It is also relatively easy to move since one can to unpack only once during his or her entire stay period. The cruising industry is experiencing upward mobility in terms of growth across the world. Statistics show that about twenty million tourists went cruising. In order to cater for the increasing desire by the tourists to cruise, t he companies involved in the business are building more ships to accommodate the tourists (Edgell 2013). The Royal Caribbean International is the largest cruise liner that has a ability of almost two hundred and twenty-five thousand ships. Other big cruise liners include the Allure of the seas that was built in two thousand and ten and the Oasis of the seas which is a make of two thousand and nine. The increase in the number of cruise ships has led to development of new trends in cruising. There are new smaller, luxurious and speedy ships that have emerged. This has highly scaled the desire for vigorous onshore adventures. Companies have increased the number of large resort ships in addition to increasing the number of shopping malls on board. The number of tourist destinations visited by the cruise liners has increased to about two thousand by the end of twenty-twelve. The destinations include the Mediterranean, Caribbean, Bahamas, and Alaska among many more. Australian tourist att ractions sites are the newest areas that tourists are now visiting. This is because the sites are new, have brand sanctuaries, glamorous and remote (Frochot Batat 2013). The booming is now booming in Australia. Over the last decade the number of people going cruising has increased from a staggering zero point six percent to two point one percent by twenty-twelve. Government projections in Australia from the department of Tourism estimate that a total of four point two percent of Australians will be going cruising which will be about one million of the population.Advertising Looking for report on communications media? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Statistics show that in two thousand and eight, cruising grew by twelve percent in the United Kingdom compared to five percent in the United States while in Australia the industry grew by a massive twenty-six percent. Almost half a million people in Australia took to cruising and this was an impressive twenty-seven percent increase in two thousand and twelve. For six consecutive years, the cruising industry has experienced a double-digit growth rate in Australia. The increase in the number of large cruise liners points to the fact that cruising is an industry that is experiencing immense growth in Australia. Big companies such as Royal Caribbean International with two super liners based in Sydney, Carnival Sea Princess which is the biggest cruise corporation and Queen Mary 2 that is owned by Cunard are among the companies that run the show in the industry (Frochot Batat 2013). The Radiance for instance was the first cruise liner to be based in Sydney in the twenty-first century. The initiative by cruise corporations to invest in cruising only serves to underlie the strength at the industry is growing. The sector is right for holidays because it accommodates all types of people including the young, families, singles, and even the old. History of cruising The company that invented cruising was founded in eighteen thirty-seven. The Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Company (P0) has celebrated almost one hundred and eighty since it first went on voyage (Hampton, 2013). Almost one hundred years later in nineteen forty-five, one million United Kingdom migrants reached their new homeland in Australia. It is documented that the scheme to bring the passengers in mass was planned by the Australian and British governments in trying to popularize Australia (Ward, 2013). PO is currently one of the most preferred cruise liners in New Zealand and Australia with its destinations in Australia, Asia, Pacific Islands, and New Zealand. Other destinations include Auckland, Brisbane, Melbourne and Sydney (Frochot Batat 2013). Most of the company ships carry an average of two thousand passengers. The company also operates an outlet called the Princess Cruises. Cruise sites The main cruising sites in Australia include the South Pacific, where thirty- seven percent of the all-cruising Australians visit. Australia takes a share of nineteen percent of the tourists and New Zealand that receives ten percent of the visitors. With thirty-four percent of the cruise ships visited last year, the industry raked in a whooping one point two million US dollars. The ports alone have ten ships permanently based there from six corporations.Advertising We will write a custom report sample on Cruising in Australia specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Australia is known all over the world as a home the koalas, kangaroos, and kiwis. The Sydney Opera House is the most famous all time architectural icon in Australia. Melbourne pristine coats line has spot shells and frolicking dolphins (PO 2008). The garden city is a beautiful park that is kept in the Christchurch comfortable for strolling while New Zealand’s culture, art, and history is kept in the beautiful Wellington Museum. The Bonorong wild life park has native animals that include the koala, kiwis, kangaroos, and cockatoos. Tourists have permission to cuddle koalas as they enjoy the breeze. Sydney Sydney is one of the largest cities in the world. It is famously referred to as the Pot of call. It is built on the most beautiful harbours in the world. It has a white-sailed design called the Sydney Opera House that is dramatic. The plan and structure makes it one of the most recognized structures in the world. It has been built on eleven acres of land and space. The famous Harbour Bridge that joins the two sides is famed for its lovely outlook. The beautiful sparkling harbour can be viewed from the reception and concert halls in the iconic house. It has an adequate space for strolling along the shoreline at sunset when it is the most beautiful to view. The central business district in Sydney ha world-class food joints including restaurants and entertainment centres. There are beautiful shops and museum where tourists can buy items o their choice including the cultural artefacts for remembrance. They include the Rocks Market (Ward, 2013). The streets of Sydney have local musicians and performers strategically located to entertain visitors. The vendors are magnificent; it becomes the responsibility of the tourist to either talk to one in the sun or under the canopy. The city’s best delicacy comes from the sea just because it is situated next to the sea. Other varieties are also available. This complements the humid weather as the city is located to the coastline. Sydney has thirty-four water-warriors along its beach line. Other things to enjoy include the golden sand, Bondi, crystal water, Coogree, and Bronte. The cliff offers the best moments for tourists to take an adventurous walk. It should be noted that surfing is the most popular of all activities in Sydney.Advertising Looking for report on communications media? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Hobart Hobart is located on the foothills of Mount Wellington in the island of Tasmania and is one of the oldest tourist attraction sites. It was established more that two hundred and fifteen years ago. It is smaller and though old, it still holds the flavour of a town that is good for leisure. It has the Richmond Bridge which is the oldest bridge in the country of Australia. This is in addition to the classic Victorian and Georgian mansions. The unique shops, galleries, and small cottages were built by convicts that were brought in the country from England. These structures give an image of what it meant to build houses in the ancient times covering more than two hundred years ago. The largest carnivorous marsupials commonly referred to in this island as the Tasmania devil produces bump-giving shrieks are found here. The animals are cranky. Tourists also get an opportunity to visit Tas and tons at the Bonorong wildlife park that also has other native wild animals. The sites waterfr ont offers one of the best sporting adventures in the world. Tourists on holiday can head out on a sea-kayak to explore the town’s coastline. By doing this, they get the best moments to catch sunshine at sunset. It takes three hours to cycle around Mount Wellington. The journey begins at the cliff of the mountain that appears above the cloud line and adventures take the tourist down the road to the harbour of Hobart. In addition to the exercise that a person enjoys, the view of the coats becomes very clear. Cradle Mountain, Freycinet Peninsula and the Bay of Fires make up some of the islands most favourite national parks. The artists in Hobart specialize in the making of wooden carvings and as such tourists can afford some of their products on their way back home. Elizabeth Street Mall and Salamanca Place are some of the places that local artisans display their products for sell. The open air markets in these stalls are always held on Saturdays. The island has the tastiest wi ne called the Tasmanian wine. Other products in the island include Chardonnay, Pinot Gris, Pinot Noir, and Riesling. Tasmanian Wine centre represents one of the more than thirty joints where refreshments are available in plenty. The increase in the number of cruise ships has led to development of new trends in cruising. There are new smaller, luxurious and speedy ships that have emerged. This has highly scaled the desire for vigorous onshore adventures. Companies have increased the number of large resort ships in addition to increasing the number of shopping malls on board. Wellington Wellington has become the native’s destination of choice for those seeking weekends full of fun. The experiences that tourists get make them chic and vibrant. Wellington in New Zealand with little wonders including restaurants, boutiques, pubs, and theatres (Kozak 2012). It is also a political city and the second largest. To many visitors, going to Wellington is a walk in the paradise. All these recreation centres are found in one place. The income that Wellington city rakes in comfortably rivals New York. Mark you; it is the fastest growing tourist destination centre in Australia. The beauty of the city also comes from its place. It is sandwiched between steep hills on one end the ocean on the other. In nineteen ninety-eight, Te Papa Tongarewa National Museum of New Zealand was opened. This marked the arrival of Wellington in to the world of the best cultural centres. The design is both a cultural and architectural evolution. It cost an enormous three hundred and seventeen million U.S Dollars to put it up. More than ten million visitors have come the iconic masterpiece since its opening with more than thirty percent of them coming from foreign countries. The site presents New Zealand’s cultural heritage in a bold and spectacular way making to receive accolades from across the world. The visitors are given a chance to engage in virtual bungee jump a trip to the preh istoric sites of New Zealand and participate in sheep-shearing. Most sporting adventures in Wellington are outdoor and represent the traditional New Zealand styles of engaging in leisure. The city has the Red Rocks Coastal Walk that stretches along the Southern coastline and is eight kilometres long. The walk covers the lava formation red rocks over to the seal-covered shores of Sinclair Head. The rock climbers also have the opportunity to exercise their leisure activities (Edgell 2013). The Cook Strait and South Island are situated in the rugged hills on the countryside. This area can be reached by boarding a four-wheel drive. The city has restaurants that offer delicacies favourable to any tourist from all over the world. The foods from India, Malaysia, Japan, and China are however, the most dominant. Though the city seems to offer a lavish life, visitors whose financial power is not very strong have their areas reserved for instance the Cuba Street, Oriental Bay, Thorndon, Eastbo urne, and Mount Victoria. Some of these areas are located on the suburbs of Wellington. The concentration of the city allows people to take the shortest time possible to walk from one end to the other. The ideal shopping stalls are located downtown the in the city. It takes an estimated half an hour to reach the centre from any of the tourist sites. Lambton Quay, which is located on Willis Street, is the most famous shopping mall in the city. Following the architectural design of its stores, it sometimes takes over the name Golden Mile. Apart from offering affordable foods, Cuba Street also offers second-hand goods that are cheap and alternative boutiques. Analysis of growth Australia is the fasted growing cruise market in the world because of the increasing number of visitors every year. This has the cruise industry experience a spectacular growth rate. New figures from the International Cruise Council of Australasia show that the number of Australians going cruising is currently m ore than six hundred thousand (Kozak 2012). The figure represents an impressive increase in the number of visitors by thirty-four percent. The industry weathered the difficult world economic times to steadily record growth. The industry has experienced a double-digit growth rate for the last six years with an average of twenty-three percent from two thousand and six. When compared to the United States and United Kingdom who have enjoyed a four and five percent increase rate at the same period, the growth is impressive. Factors attributed to these by analysts include the strength of the Australian currency that is available and strong. The stakeholders in the industry however, hold that they are an emerging market and have not reached the level of North America among others. All the players agree that the rate at which the sector is growing has never been experienced in over two decades. While booming of the industry in North America took place in the seventies, when people began cru ising in large numbers, Australia has only felt that same in the last one decade (Hampton 2013). The top three cruise destinations in Australia are led by NSW, Queensland, and Victoria receiving forty percent of the visitors, twenty-four and sixteen percent respectively. The fastest growing favourable destination is New Zealand that saw an increase in the influx of cruisers by more than eighty percent last year. However, the South pacific still controlled the largest share of the market within Australia as it controlled thirty-seven percent in the same period. The increase has partly been attributed to the change in recreational activities by the retired people. Traditionally referred to as grey nomads, most of them have changed and take to cruising hence becoming the blue nomads. In comparison to the Unites States that had three point two percent of its population going into cruising, Australia had two point one percent (Edgell, 2013). Associations of cruising estimate that the num ber of Australians going cruising will reach one million by the year two thousand and twenty. This will translate to a four point two percent of the total Australian population. At this rate Australia will overtake the United States as the largest international cruising market. In anticipation of this, Sydney has been cautioned that its terminal infrastructure at Darling Harbour which is almost at its ultimate ability will not be sufficient to cater for projected growth. Failure to take cautionary measures will mean that the port at Garden Island will be shared. This will cause a devastating economic blow to the city of Sydney (Cruise Media Oy Ltd. 2008). Conclusion The cruise industry in Australia is experiencing the fastest growth rate in the world today. Several factors analysed in this paper can be attributed to this. The remote areas of the sites has added value to the increase. However, the biggest contributor is the new inters that Australians have developed in cruising (Koza k 2012). The largest percentages of people who engage in cruising in Australia are domestic tourists. It can be passed the future of cruising in Australia is assured as the projections point to the increase in the number of domestic cruisers is likely to hit one million in the next ten years. This covers travel tickets, entertainment, meals, and accommodation. It is also relatively easy to move since one can to unpack only once during his or her entire stay period. The cruising industry is experiencing upward mobility in terms of growth across the world. References Cruise Media Oy Ltd. (2008). New tonnage to increase PO Cruises Australia’s presence in Fremantle, Brisbane and Auckland. Cruise Business Review, 1(2), 4-16. Edgell, D. (2013). Tourism and Policy Planning. NSW: Cengage Publishers. Frochot, I Batat, W. (2013). Marketing and designing the tourist experience. NSW: Cengage Publishers. Hampton, M. (2013). Backpacker Tourism and Economic Development. Oxford: Oxford Univ ersity Press. Kozak, M (2012). Tourism and Marketing: Both sides of the counter. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Ward, D. (2013). Berlitz: Complete guide to cruising and Cruise ships 2013. Princeton, NJ: Berlitz Publishing. This report on Cruising in Australia was written and submitted by user Athena Barber to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.

Intelligence Collection Disciplines

Intelligence Collection Disciplines Intelligence is the know-how of an issue. Business intelligence, for example, understands business practices. Determination of Intelligence classification is according to the field in operation.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Intelligence Collection Disciplines specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More However, the intelligence community refers to a community of government operatives who work to unearth information from the society, economy and political structure, issues that are meaningful to a nation’s security. The data collection may be within or outside a country’s borders. The intelligence community has several modes of intelligence gathering ranging between covert and overt operations. The intelligence community collects information in five main ways/disciplines. Human Intelligence is the collection of intelligence from human sources. The collection, therefore, is either with direct knowledge of the col lection by the source such as through interrogation, or without their knowledge through clandestine means. It is a valuable source of information: especially in regards to the wealth of knowledge it can provide. It also requires less massive investment, unlike other collection disciplines. This, however, is at the behest of source reliability, since, evidence from other intelligence collection disciplines is usually a prerequisite before putting it into use. Secondly, human rights abuses at the hands of interrogators may arise while covert operatives essentially put their lives in danger in the course of an operation. Signals Intelligence gathering is through privately obtaining signal transmissions, which may be inter party/interpersonal communication (communication intelligence) or electronic signal interception (electronic intelligence).Advertising Looking for essay on government? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More C ommunication intelligence is through tapping conversation between two or more parties such as tapping emails or cell phones. Electronic intelligence is the collection of information through analysis of electronic signals such as radar information. Especially in electronic intelligence, it is accurate, with modern technology; however, this can be subject to tampering. Imagery Intelligence collection is through photo imagery. Accomplishment of this discipline is through aerial photography or by satellites. In modern times, apart from collecting information about physical structures and ground movement, through appropriate technology can gain additional information such as the number of people within buildings through assessing heat signatures or even the radiation levels at a nuclear plant. However, this would require low flying aircraft in enemy territory, which is dangerous and may provoke war. Therefore, in cases where countries are not in conflict, satellite photography is the cho ice of use for imagery intelligence but can be limiting as it provides only physical structure and ground activity. Therefore, imagery intelligence is a discipline whose impact is primarily in the provision of areas of speculative activity, backing up other intelligences while guiding plans of military action. Measurement and signature Intelligence goals are to collect information about nuclear radiation and weaponry through analysis of electronic and image intelligence. Nuclear activity at nuclear plants involves enrichment of uranium to obtain energy. The enrichment process of energy production and development of nuclear weapons produce different radiation levels. This is through analysis of ground activity near a nuclear plant by identifying component of new materials brought to the plant. Additionally, information collection of radiation levels in the course of enrichment is of the essence.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Intelligence Collection Discipl ines specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Satellite intelligence can collect information about ground activity while imagery intelligence can collect radiation at such a plant. Especially in enemy territory, collection of radiation levels at such a plant by aerial methods may be too risky thus satellites have to do, which is speculation on possible activity at such a nuclear plant. Assessment of weaponry is through satellite details of military barracks. This too is speculative as actual weapons production may be within buildings and weaponry magnitudes are not assessable by identifying ground activity at barracks. Open-Source Intelligence collection is from public information such as from media, public records, industrial and professional data. The amount of information in the public spectrum is wide; therefore, intelligence collection is tedious. It may reveal information gems through trend statistical analysis, for example, which may identify potential hot spots. With such information, it can now guide other intelligence efforts of the government such as imagery intelligence and human intelligence. It may further provide information on potential accomplices of a suspect. Also enables the government to select a covert operative that will fit the appropriate profile of an accomplice. However, trend analysis is not a truly accurate tool but use of technology such as super computers can boost ease of collection and accuracy of assessment.

Debate Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 11

Debate - Essay Example If the issues of abortion are resolved at the legislature, a woman’s right to decide is more likely to be given much weight because of their right of privacy. However, it is worth noting that the concern of the fetus’ inability to decide whether to live or not. It is for this reason that I believe this issue should be resolved by the courts that are more likely to protect the interests of the meek which in this case are fetuses (Ginsberg, Theodore, Margaret, Caroline, & Robert 750). In addition to being resolved by the courts, this contentious issue should also be resolve at the federal level and not state level. The United States of America is comprised of a number of states and in the event that the issue of abortion is solved at the state level, it is most likely that all the states will not have a unanimous ruling on the matter. Therefore, women would easily travel to states with legislations that favor their interests. This implies that in the event that the issue of abortion is resolved at the state level, people would easily move from one state to another with the hope of finding a soft spot to carry out an abortion (Ginsberg, Theodore, Margaret, Caroline, & Robert

Global Company Environment & Strategy Coursework

Global Company Environment & Strategy - Coursework Example Soon, true to its mission and vision, IKEA opened its first oversea store in Norway, followed by many other stores and distribution centres in many parts of Europe and the United States. Thus in 1990 onwards, IKEA embarked on a global operations strategy and put up more stores in UAE, China and other parts of Asia, Australia and even Russia. Today, IKEA pioneered the global market and successfully positioned the IKEA brand in more than 40 countries in Europe, North America, Asia and Australia with more than 300 stores and more than 12,000 products in its product range. IKEA also introduced innovations in its stores by putting up IKEA restaurants and groceries to cater to the needs of its growing customers. All of this growth would not be possible without implementing strategic and global operations management that transcends national boundaries. ... Operations management took responsibility in protecting the environment by changing the way they do things in IKEA and by using environment friendly materials. IKEA also took care of the less privileged children in the world by generously donating and partnering with UNICEF welfare programs. 2. Compare and contrast the critical success factors (CSF) that helped IKEA to be competitive. Briefly outline how â€Å"Activity mapping technique† helps IKEA link competitive advantage, core competence, CSF and supporting activities. The major contributor to the success of IKEA is low price differentiation of its Swedish furniture that is globally appealing. While contemporary companies are focused on specialty design, IKEA keeps their design simple, light and functional, produced at the least cost without sacrificing quality. IKEA mass-produced for the worldwide market while its competitor mostly produced on demand. While IKEA’s competitors shipped and delivered bulky preassemble d products, the company innovated by selling unassembled products on â€Å"where is as is basis†, thus bringing down price without sacrificing quality. The results are â€Å"flat packages† and lowered transportation and storage cost. Another critical success factor is the way IKEA managed its supply chain. Instead of directly managing product quality and investing on costly plant, property and equipment, IKEA delegated the responsibility by partnering with more than 1,200 suppliers in 55 countries. This offers more flexibility and keeps their headquarter focus on transnational operational strategies, allows more resources for research and design, marketing and advertising campaigns, and even more resources for community social

Analysis of the Macro Environment of Barcelona Football Club Essay

Analysis of the Macro Environment of Barcelona Football Club - Essay Example The main objective of Nunez as the president of the club was to make Barcelona as world-class club. To accomplish this goal, Nunez gave the club stability on the pitch and off the pitch. He had some strict attitudes in himself as the president of the club that intensely affected the image of the club. He held to a stringent policy regarding wages and discipline of the players and the team’s support staffs that actually helped the club to achieve its success. He did not meet demands of players like Maradona, Romario and Ronaldo for the sake of the club. During his era, UEFA Cup Winners’ Cup, Copa del Rey Cup, European Super Cup and many more. His presidency lasted for 22 years as resigned in 2000 after the loss to Real Madrid in the champions League (Hamil, Walters & Watson, 2010, pp. 477-480). PESTEL Analysis of Nunez’s era: The PESTEL analysis discusses the Political factors, Economic factors, Social factors, Technological factors, Environmental factors and Lega l Factors. During the era of Nunez, all these factors led to remarkable changes. This paper discusses on the political and the economic factors. By the start of the era of Nunez, the club and the country came out of the rule of the fascist dictator General Franco (Vincent, 2007, p. 93). He deteriorated the membership model of ownership at the club, reduced club members’ rights and eroded the democracy within the club statutes. Apart from this the degree of government intervention was very low during Nunez’s presidency due to Spain’s transition to democracy (Casals, 2011, p. 112). During his era, there was a lack of transparency regarding the choice of assembly members. During the Nunez era, the emphasis was on the maximization of the club’s economic potential. There was a lack of transparency regarding the accounting procedure, setting and monitoring of the annual budget. The economic situation of the club was not satisfactory during this era. And this le d the club to face almost the problem of bankruptcy at the end of 2003 (Hamil, Walters & Watson, 2010, pp. 477-480) (see Table 1 in the Appendix). The era since Joan La Porta (2003-present): The era of Joan La Porta (2003-2010): Politically and economically weak situation of the FCB was recovered in the era of Joan La Porta. He opposed the former president Nunez and elected as the president of the club on June 15, 2003 (History of FC Barcelona, 2011). And his era lasts to June 30, 2010 (History of FC Barcelona, 2011). He was the most victorious president in terms of prizes won by the club. During his era the arrival of Frank Rijkaard, as the manager of the club and Ronaldinho, as the superstar footballer of the club led to the success of the club. The new style of his management of eventually helped the club to achieve an unbelievable success. His initial era as the president did not start with success. During the starting season of his presidency, the club could not manage to win a single trophy. But he requested players and fans to have faith on the team management and the team ultimately started playing fantastic and fascinating football after the signing of some of the greatest domestic, such as Puyol, Xavi, Valdes, Presas etc. and international footballers, such as Deco, Eto’o, Edmilson etc. His era also underwent from some of criticisms too. Some of the members of his team management thought that he always tried to use his

Water Pollution Control In The Textile Industry Environmental Sciences Essay

Water Pollution Control In The Textile Industry Environmental Sciences Essay The water law framework in our country is attributed by the coexistence of a number of different principles, rules and acts adopted over several decades extending from common law principles and irrigation acts from the colonial acts to the recent regulation of water quality and pollution. The basic underlying reasons for water law reforms are both physical and institutional. Over the past few decades water has gradually become sparse in many parts of the country. This can be attributed to increased pollution of finite water resources and also increased use of water by all categories of water users as a consequence of economic and population growth. The Water Act of 1974 was Indias first attempt towards dealing comprehensively with the environment related issues. Water is a subject in the State List under the Constitution. Consequently, the Water Act which is a central law came into being under Article 252(I) of the Constitution which empowers the Union Government to make laws in a field reserved for states. All the states have approved the implementation of Water Act 1974. In spite of this there is a lack of umbrella legislation at the national level because of which different state and central legal interventions do not coincide often. Water Prevention And Control Of Pollution Act, 1974 Salient Features The Water Act establishes a Central and State pollution control boards. The Central Board may advise the Central Govt. on water pollution issues, coordinate the activities of state pollution control boards and devise a comprehensive plan for the control and prevention of water pollution. In case of any conflicts between the Central and the State boards, central board prevails. This act is applicable to streams, inland waters, subterranean waters, and sea or tidal waters. Standards for the discharge of effluent or the quality of the used water being released into the water sources are to be prescribed by the state boards. Any person or any industry for that matter has to take the consent of the state board before proceeding towards establishing any industry, operation or process or any treatment or waste disposal system. The Act specifies other important functions of the state boards as follows: Devising a comprehensive programme for prevention, control and abatement of water pollution in respective states Encouraging, conducting, and participating in investigations and research of water pollution problems Inspecting facilities for sewage and developing economical and reliable methods of its treatment State board in its capacity may take emergency measures if it foresees accidents or events that might pollute the water bodies. These measures include activities like removing the pollutants, alleviating the damage and issuing orders to the polluter prohibiting effluent discharges. Under section 33A state boards can issue directions to any person, office or authority, including orders to close, prohibit or regulate any industry, operation or process and to stop or regulate the supply of water, electricity or any other service. Not complying with a court order under section 33 or a direction from the board under section 33A is punishable by fines and imprisonment as per section 41. In order to assist the Water Act, the Water Pollution Board constituted under the Pollution Act, has been empowered under the Cess Act to levy a cess/tax for meeting the financial requirements for its working. This cess is for the purposes and utilization under the Water Act. The Cess Act grants a rebate in the cess payable to those who install a plant for the treatment of sewage or effluents. This is one of the steps to encourage establishments to set up effluent treatment plants and process the effluents before releasing them. However it is to be noted that Cess Act cannot be deciphered individually and should be taken into consideration only in relation with the Water Act. While it is quite evident that water laws are the need of the hour but these water law reforms can only contribute to solving water management issues but fail to solve issues related to human rights, social, environmental and health aspects of water. Textile industry The textile industry in India mainly depends upon exports and manufacturing. Export income from textiles account for around 30% of Indias export revenues and 3% of Indias Gross domestic product. This industry has grown a lot over the past few years especially after the economic liberalization in 1991 where the country was opened to free trade under the auspices of Dr Manmohan Singh. The table below gives the major strength and weaknesses of the textile industry in the country Strengths Weaknesses Production Capacity Increased global competition Cheap Labor Dumping Efficient production facilities Huge Decentralized sector Large domestic markets High production costs Large Export Potential Poor Supply chain management Flexible manufacturing Systems Outdated technologies To grow at a rate of around 15% in the coming years the sector needs to keep in mind the following points which shall go a long way in ensuring that growth is maintained at healthy rate and is also sustainable. Threat of competition in Domestic Market Ecological and Social Awareness Ecological and social awareness are going to play a huge role in determining who is going to reap profits in a sustainable manner keeping in view the sensitivity of the stakeholders who are most of the times the losers when large scale development takes place. The industry is likely to face pressure from the media, the Government and the common people to follow international norms and regulations which shall prohibit it from using natural resources like Water which is a key ingredient in producing textiles. The way this industry uses water and how much it pollutes the various sources shall be determined by external factors. Developed markets have extremely high standards of consumer consciousness on issues such as polluting Dyes, Usage of Child Labor, Unhealthy working conditions of the mill workers etc. Standards like SA 8000 have now been started to get implemented in the industry at a large scale. This has also led to pressure on companies to limit sourcing from countries which violate the practices mandated under the norms of SA 8000. The Indian industry needs to improve its working practices and the fallout of the new international developments in this particular area. In such a scenario large players can take advantage of this and indulge in practices which promote sustainability. Proper water Use by textile mills and recycling and purifying water and then reusing it for industrial purposes can also serve the purpose in the long run. Textile Industry and water Pollution Textile Industry is one of the most polluting industries in the country and in terms of consumption of water it constitutes around 3.2% of total consumption of water for various processes like scouring, sizing, and bleaching, dying and other associated processes. It is one of the most growing sectors in the Indian economy in terms of its contribution to the total GDP of the country. Water pollution is done by each and every process in the whole manufacturing of textiles, The table below gives an exhaustive list of the various processes and the nature of effluents and pollutants which are released as a result of the above. Process Pollutants Nature of Effluents Desizing Starch, Glucose, Resins, Fats and Waxes High Biochemical oxygen demand Kiering Caustic Soda, Wax, Grease, Soda Ash, Sodium Sillicate Strongly Alkaline, High Biochemical oxygen Demand Bleaching Hypochlorite, Caustic soda, Hydrogen peroxide and acids Low biochemical oxygen demand and strongly alkaline Mercerization Caustic Soda Strongly alkaline, low biochemical oxygen demand Dyeing Reducing agents like sulphides, acetic acids and soaps Fairly high biochemical oxygen demand ,strongly colored Printing Dyes, starch, gums oil, china clay, mordants, acids and salts Faily high biochemical oxygen demand, Oily appearance Finishing Special finishes, starch, salts, tallow Low Biochemical oxygen demand, less alkaline The polluted water is very harmful for human beings living in and around the area where the pollution takes place as the turbidity of the water is very high and toxic elements present in the water which have a detrimental effect on humans and animals make such water unfit for consumption. The stakeholders which reside alongside areas which are affected by this menace face severe health hazards and face decrease and productivity and life span as a result of the above. Effects on Aquatic Life and Other living creatures High PH levels in water makes it alkaline, alkaline water is not fit for aquatic creatures like fishes and it also causes incrustation in sewers and may also damage crops by hampering their natural growth rate. Spoiling the natural color of water hampers the passage of sunlight and thus prevents photosynthesis in the aquatic plants and other marine life existing inside water. The effluents and oils present in the pollutants which are passed into water increase the turbidity of water and gives it a bad appearance and foul smell. Oily scum interferes with the oxygen transfer and colloidal matter clog the pores of soil. High levels of dissolved solids are detrimental to sewers as it causes incrustation in sewers. High level of sodium is also harmful to crops. Dissolved oxygen in water is an essential element in marine life and therefore the amount of oxygen required to correct the effluent is expressed in the form of biochemical oxygen demand or BOD. Steps to curb Water Pollution To curb pollution due to these textile mills in the areas around them the following measures can be taken in order to increase measures leading to long term sustainability as a corporate strategy which is wholly aligned to the business goals of being profitable in the long run and acquire market share in the future. Reduction in waste water volume: The water used in processing of textiles is reduced to a considerable extent such that the effluent concentration is limited to a specified small volume of water and it does not start impacting larger volume of water. Counter flow processing Water re-use technique which uses the same water before discharging it into the water body so that effluent concentration is limited to a small volume and more water is saved in the process. Reduction of process chemicals: The process chemicals create more than 90% of the pollution in textile industries. This also brings down the production cost in terms of the chemicals used. It can be achieved through reusing various chemicals when processes are completed. For Example: Caustic soda is recovered from the mercerizing and sourcing and is consequently filtered and dialyzed so that it can be reused. Process modification would involve slight modifications in the various processes used during manufacturing in order to create lesser pollution and reduces unnecessary wastage of water. Certain alternate chemicals can also be used during manufacturing so that recovering those chemicals become easy and it thus can be used in further manufacturing processes. Pre-Release Stage Water Treatment Before water is released into the nearest water body it is essential that it is treated properly in order to ensure that there is significant reduction in the level of pollutants in water before it gets released into the water body. The following steps are necessary in order to ensure proper water condition before release into the nearest river or stream or lake. Primary Treatment: It involves concepts of removal of suspended solids by sedimentation, floatation or coagulation techniques using alum and electrolyte. Secondary Treatment: This involves oxidation of organic matter by aeration either by chemical of biological methods or by both. This is done in presence of micro organisms in presence of chemicals such as Urea. Pollutants resistant to biodegradation such as detergents and petrochemicals are removed by non biological means and are again treated with bleaching powder before releasing them into the water body. Tertiary Treatments: Tertiary treatment contains of three main methods like Chemical Coagulation which involves a mixing tank with the effluent and the coagulant mixed and its PH adjusted to an optimum level. The resultant coagulated material is separated by sedimentation or flocculation. Carbon absorption Technique which is effective in removing pigments and dyes using carbon which is activated and has large surface area. Reverse osmosis where cellulose acetate is used to create a semi permeable membrane and subjected to pressure which is usually greater than the osmotic pressure of the effluent. This process can remove 95% of the dissolved solid content as the solution passes from area of higher concentration to lower concentration. Now to discuss the applicability of these methods to curb water pollution in Textile industry and also to do the cost benefit analysis of the same we shall discuss a relevant case of Tiruppur Textile Industry. Case discussion: Tiruppur Textile Industry Background South Asia lately has become the hub of Industrialisation and the unchecked growth is leading to severe environmental problems. Industries have sprung up as clusters which is why the issue of environmental pollution becomes even more relevant in highly water polluting industries like textile dyeing, leather tanning, paper and pulp processing, sugar manufacturing, etc. The runoff released by these industries leads to contamination of surface and ground water sources and eventually impacts the livelihood of the poor. In a usual scenario, the above mentioned industrial units function at a small or medium scale, are a huge employment opportunity for the locals and have the potential to generate foreign exchange because all these industries are export oriented and more than half of their produce is shipped abroad. Given the vast coverage of these industries, the pollution control mechanisms have been awfully weak in these units. The pollution control authorities have been lenient in imple menting the law and ensuring prevention of water pollution caused due to these industries mainly considering the socio economic benefits that they provide and also the low financial capacity of the small scale units. It is a huge capital investment for the relatively smaller industrial units to set up effluent treatment plants and the return on investment is very low. Since they provide employment, therefore these agencies have not tightened the noose on them. This stance of the Pollution Control Boards further discouraged the polluting industries to formulate and implement pollution management and reduction strategies either by efficient effluent treatment or process changes by adopting newer and cleaner technologies. In this report we have attempted to analyse the environmental impact of the production process followed in a textile unit with reference to Tiruppur, a major textile cluster in South India. A cost benefit analysis of the implementation of cleaner production processes and setting up of treatment plants has also been done to depict the return on investment for these textile units. Textile Industry And Its Benefits Tiruppur, located in Tamil Nadu, is a leading cotton knitwear industrial hub in South India. The industrial activities have experienced a rapid growth during the last two decades due to decentralization and flexibility. At this point of time more than 9000 small-scale textile related units are operating with a volume of investment more than US $ 200 million. The city of Tiruppur contributes 56% of the total cotton knitwear exports from India. The industry provides socio-economic benefits to the local community and to the nation in the form of employment, income, and foreign exchange. More than 2 lakh people are directly employed by this industry. The export value from Tiruppur during the year 2002 was about US $ 957.5 million. An equal amount is sold in the domestic market. The economic opulence of Tiruppur on this industry and the local community is employed either directly or indirectly in this industry in one way or the other. Textile Process And Pollution The textile manufacturing process on the whole is a polluting activity with the major contributors being the bleaching and dyeing (textile processing).During 1981, in Tiruppur , only around 70 textile units were operating. This number drastically rose to 450 ten years later and further to 866 in 1997. With due credit to efforts of the Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board (TNPCB) against the release of untreated effluents some units had to be shut down because of non-conformity to the pollution prevention standards in the state. In 2004 there were a total of 702 textile processing units functioning in Tiruppur. These units together used around 85 million litres per day (mld) of water and discharged a similar quantity (83 mld) as effluents, which are laced with a significant volume of chemicals used at the wet processing stage. The point worth noting here is that the amount of water used as input is almost same as the amount of water that is released in the water bodies which actually me ans that if there is a possibility to treat the effluents, the resultant residual water can be used as a recycled input and thus costs can be decreased. These units collectively produced a quantity of 15,000 tonnes of cloth per month. The incessant release of untreated effluents for more than 10 years has resulted in accumulation of harmful suspended and dissolved solids in the soil, ground water, etc. at Tiruppur and surroundings. During 1980 to 2000, the cumulative pollution load discharged by the Tiruppur units is as follows: Total Dissolved Solids(TDS) : 2.35 million tonnes Chloride: 1.31mt Sulphate: 0.13 mt Total Suspended Solids: 0.098 mt Chemical Oxygen Demand: 0.09mt Biological Oxygen Demand: 0.03 mt Oil and Grease: 0.001mt Impact of Textile Effluents On The Environment From the research conducted on water pollution in Tiruppur area, it is clearly evident that the accumulation of chemicals had added to the woes. All ground water studies showed that open wells and bore wells in and around Tiruppur exhibited high levels of TDS (ranging from 3000mg/l to 11,000 mg/l) and Chloride (ranging from 2000 mg/l to 5000 mg/l) due to industrial pollution and these values were much higher than the background level for this region. The available groundwater in this region was rendered unsuitable for domestic, industrial or irrigation consumption. The surface water studies indicated that the Noyyal river (the river passes through Tiruppur and receives the major share of untreated effluents), reservoir, downstream of Noyyam, (Orthapalayam) and irrigation tanks have been adversely affected by industrial pollution and the surface water is unfit for consumption purposes. A study to measure the quality of soil also indicated the pollution concentration and most of the ar ea the soil is alkaline (pH >8.5) or tending to alkalinity (pH 8-8.5). The Damage Cost Imposed By Pollution Due to high water pollution many adverse effects in the ecology of the Tiruppur area are observed. Agricultural water, drinking water and various fisheries in Tiruppur area and downstream villages have been affected. The water which has been polluted by the textile industry is injurious (EC>3mmhos/cm) to agriculture in an area of 146.3 square km and critical (EC 1.1 to 3 mmhos/cm) in 218.3 square km. Because of this, crop productivity in these villages has declined substantially which has affected the welfare of farmers. Recently farmers took action and filed a case against the industry. The total cost to agriculture was estimated at US $50 million. Drinking water in these villages has also been affected and the municipality has to bring additional water from neighboring villages. In affected villages, special water supply schemes have been issued by the Water Board. Also, a lot of the short fall is being met by bringing water from distant sources of water which leads to the wastage of a lot of time and effort. Considerin all of this, the total damage cost due to pollution of drinking water comes down to US$23.8 million. The fisheries activities in various downstream regions like the Noyyalriver, tanks and reservoirs have been affected as well. Fish mortality rate has increased which has led to a stoppage of fish culture. US $.15 miilion comes out to be the loss in value of fish and besides that, the possibility of the toxicity of existing fish is also high, consumption of which can lead to serious health problems. This high level of pollution has had an adverse effect on the operations of the industry itself. Since most of the industrial wells in this area have only coloured, or very highly polluted water, major water supply is brought in through tankers from peripheral areas. The cost incurred by the industry to maintain this additional source of water supply is US $165 million. Besdies this, the continued buying of water leads to the development of a water market, which causes the water levels in the peripheral villages to go down, affecting the livelihood of villagers. On many occasions, protests have been done by villagers against the water transfer. A mega water supply project is being undertaken by the Tiruppur Area Development Corporation. The total cost of this project is estimated to be US $269 millions and will have to be financed by government agencies and the consortium. Under this scheme, it has been planned that 185 mld of water, which would be both industrial and domestic, would be transferred to Tiruppur from River Cauvery, which is an interstate and a very controversial river in India. If this project would succeed, the industry will need to pay more than what they are currently paying for water, which could result in a huge cost increase for textile processing. Besides these quantifiable terms, human health and aquatic eco-system of river, tanks and reservoir, livestock etc. also get affected by water pollution, but their cost has not been taken into account as it is not easy to express in monetary terms. Status of Effluent Treatment On seeing various adverse effects and hence assessing the seriousness of pollution from textile affluents, the Courts finally gave an order against the continued functioning of various polluting units without being accompanied by effluent treatment plants in 1997. After this order, the state pollution control agency has increased the amount of pressure on all the textile manufacturing units towards effluent treatment. The units which were too small to comply with these regulations and survive were closed. Presently out of the existing 702 units, 278 units are treating upto 38 mld of water effluents through Common Effluent Treatment Plants (CEPTs) which are 8 in number and 424 units are treating upto 45 mldof chemical effluents using Individual Effluent Treatment Plants (IETPs). For effective effluent treatment, US $ 10 million has been spent for various fixed costs, which the Government subsidizes heavily. Besides these, an additional US $ 6.7 million has already been incurred as ann ual running costs. The cost analysis has shown that the variable cost per unit of effluent treatment is much higher than the capital cost both in the IETPs (which is 86% of total cost) and CETPs (which is 73%). Unfortunately the current treatment system is not sufficient for reducing the large amounts of TDS, particularly the acids like Chloride and Sulphates. The average concentration of TDS in the treated effluents is 300 of the TNPCB standard of 2100 mg/l. The same is true of Chloride, which averages more than 300% of the CETP existent standard. Learnings from the case Thus we can see that the management of environment at the Tiruppur textile industry has been difficult and the various difficulties faced by the various actors (State Pollution Control Board, Water Resources Organisations, Local Government , Industrial Organisations, NGOs etc.) or interested parties in this regard or in finding a solution for this problem. If these difficulties had been effectively dealt with, the environmental impacts could not have continued at this level. The above analysis on various RO plants and CPT for the textile units has clearly shown the long run advantage to the industries apart from reducing the various social costs. These technologies can be implemented by all large-scale units who possess the capacity for investment and have long-term vision about the business. But the affordability of affluent treatments among existing large number of small and medium units remains a big challenge. The textile manufacturing industry is predominantly an export oriented business which faces high competition. So any investment done on RO or CPT here impacts the cost of production by increasing it in the short run which is especially true for the smaller units. Also being able to find such big investment, which is approximately more than 10-20 times the overall capital investment, is almost impossible. But the introduction of a much cleaner production for textiles and the availability of advanced treatment technology is the viable long term solution towards further improvement of environmental standards. Realizing the same facts, (i.e. the existing economic benefits of the Tiruppur industry, social costs of pollution, various constraints in effective management of pollution among small scale units, and the need for a having a critical solution for the pollution problem), an integrated process of pollution management can be attempted at by different actors who are related to Tiruppur textile business. In such circumstances the role of various foreign buyers and the consumers of Tiruppur garments are greatly significant. If a very strong demand for garments which are pollution free or come with a green label is observed from them along with a willingness to pay more, definitely it would provide pressure to introduce cleaner technology by the various industries operating in this domain. A few very small units will have no other option but to close down, since making such an investment may not be viable for them. Other units however can think of various steps like unit modification individually or even have joint units. Most critical are proper technical guidelines for these units and financial support is needed for the units from various domestic and foreign research institutions and other donor agencies. In parallel, sincere collaborative efforts from joint industrial associations, pollution law enforcement agencies, industrial consultants and experts, etc. are also required. Only than the textile industry in Tiruppur would be a ble to achieve the ideal objective of sustainable development. Recommended Strategy for companies in textile industry The companies in Textile industries can be divided into two: Major players with financial strength to invest in greener technologies and small player which need assistance even to maintain regulatory standards. Hence the strategy will also differ based on the type of company. Strategy for small players A broad categorization has been done based on the revenue. Below Rs. 10 million the company can be said a small company. It is imperative for a small company to follow regulatory standards at least. While government is finding difficult to close all such factory due to labor intensive nature of such industry it is always a long term risk hence the standards should always be maintained. Hence their strategy is to achieve the minimum standards by increasing the cost as less as possible. The immediate high investment in green technology may throw them out of market. Following strategy must be followed by the company. To have least impact on increment in costs the company might seek financial assistance from government subsidy or jointly making investments. To get knowledge assistance it could collaborate with various stakeholders. Small Players (Under Rs. 10 million) Strategic Objective Maintain Pollution control board standards with least impact of costs Maintain PCB Standards (Avoid risk of closure) Annual maintenance and up gradation as per standards Collaboration with the foreign buyer Setting up Joint Effluent Treatment Plants (JETP) Identify subsidies given by government and avail them Join with other small players to invest in ETP Collaboration with pollution enforcement agencies, NGOs, industrial consultants, Industrial associations, Financial assistance Knowledge Assistance Least impact on costs (Remain competitive) Strategy for big players: A major player could afford a significant investment for the long term overall benefit. The strategy should be to gain competitive advantage by achieving Cleaner process technology and establishing efficient effluent treatment plants. These will have high investments in short term but will give major cost advantage and high value of intangibles, other important aspect is to have a differentiation based on greener features. This way a high premium could be charged against the product and much higher overall profitability could be achieved. Big Players (Above Rs. 10 million) Strategic Objective Differentiate product based on Green features Process improvement (Raw material efficiency, Waste reduction) Application of Cleaner Process Technology (CPT) e.g. soft flow machines, dye bath segregation etc. Collaborate with foreign buyers to create demand for green products Establish Individual Effluent Treatment Plant (IETP) Recycle major percentage of used water using RO etc. technology Get green label and accreditations from ISO etc. Recycling of critical resources (Water) Promotions as a Clean and Green Product

Computer Systems Analyst :: essays research papers fc

Computer Systems Analyst   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  I push the button, I hear a noise, the screen comes alive. My computer loads up and starts to process. I see the start screen for Windows 95, and I type in my password. Even though this takes time, I know that I will be able to do whatever I want to do without any trouble, without any glitches, without any questions. My computer is now easier to use and more user friendly because computer systems analysts have worked out the problems that many computer systems still have.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  It appears to me that a career choice needs to contain a number of different features. The first being: Will this area of interest mentally stimulate me as well as challenge me? The second being: Is there a way of making a living in these areas of interest? And finally: Do I enjoy the different activities within this area of interest? From the first day that I started my first computer, I have grasped the concepts quickly and with ease. But the computer as well as I will never stop growing. I have introduced myself to all topics of word processing to surfing the web. After reviewing a number of resources, I have noticed a relatively high demand for technologically integrated hardware and software positions available with companies that wish to compete with the demand for â€Å"networking†. (â€Å"Computer Scientists† 95) This leads me to believe that future employment prospects will be high and of high quality pay within the next eight to ten years. The past, present, and future have and will see the computer. Since I have seen the computer, I have enjoyed the challenges and countless opportunities to gain in life from this machine. From school projects to games; from the Internet to programming languages; I have and always will feel like that little kid in the candy store.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Job Description   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  A Computer Systems Analyst decides how data are collected, prepared for computers, processed, stored, and made available for users. (â€Å"Computer Systems† COIN 1) The main achievement as a systems analyst is to improve the efficiency or create a whole new computer system that proves to be more efficient for a contracting company. When on an assignment, the analyst must meet a deadline. While striving for a deadline, he must create and comprehend many sources of information for the presentation. He must review the systems capabilities, workflow, and scheduling limitations (â€Å"Systems Analyst† 44), to determine if certain parts of the system must be modified for a new program.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  First, a computer programmer writes a program that he thinks will be